Starbucks embroiled in voting row

Starbucks, the American multinational chain of coffeehouses, has been forced to deny that its workers couldn’t vote in the Turkish elections because of their shift hours.

"The operating hours of all our stores allow our employees to vote. The working hours of our employees are properly adjusted," the company said in a statement on Twitter.

Ozgun Emre Koc, a Twitter user with more than 240,000 followers, initially made the claim in a tweet that said Starbucks employees had messaged him saying most employees were not able to leave work before 4pm local time and with only an hour left to vote. The tweet went viral.

Starbucks said its employees ended their shift at 4pm, an hour before polls closed (Reuters)

After Starbucks denied it was hindering its employees from voting, Koc highlighted a statement from Turkey's Supreme Election Board that said the chain and similar places should be closed on election day so people working there could vote.

Cafes are normally closed in Turkey during voting hours.